Editor’s Choice

In a salary cap league, every dollar matters. Teams must be able to get as much value out of their players as possible which means making smart financial decisions as one bad contract can affect a team’s future. Even with that in mind, front offices continue to give out bad contracts and they become handcuffed

In the mid 2000’s, Blackhawks fans were mostly non-existent, and it was nearly impossible to get over a few thousand people to come to a game. The few fans that were loyal to the team were just looking for a sliver of hope. Now, after nine straight postseason appearances, which included three cups in six

The great Jacques Plante summed it up this way, “Imagine sitting at your desk. You make a mistake. A red light goes on behind you, a siren starts sounding and 18,000 people are yelling at you. That’s what it’s like to be a goaltender.” MONTREAL, CANADA – CIRCA 1972: Jacques Plante poses for a photo

Since the Detroit Red Wings declared themselves as sellers prior to the 2017 NHL trade deadline, general manager Ken Holland has generally done a good job of guiding the franchise through a “rebuild on the fly.” Good enough to warrant a contract extension for the long-time GM? We’ll see. Whether or not Holland is retained

The Edmonton Oilers have traded away 29-year-old winger Patrick Maroon to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft and prospect J.D. Dudek, Bob McKenzie announced Monday. Maroon was an interesting name on the trade market given his size and ability to chip in offense at a fair

For the Pittsburgh Penguins, the 2018 NHL Trade Deadline is quite unique. Jim Rutherford and the Penguins, after a few under the radar moves that included adding Jamie Oleksiak and Riley Sheahan, have placed themselves in a position to compete for a Stanley Cup championship as is. Their stars are hitting on all cylinders right

The Carolina Hurricanes seem to need the woodshed. At least that’s what it looked like given their recent play. After the team exhibited a brutal lack of effort in both their home games against the Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks, head coach Bill Peters took the team to the verbal woodshed. Since then,

“Shoulda, woulda, coulda.” Those words are being uttered more these days than ever by fans of the Chicago Blackhawks due to somewhat questionable decisions by general manager Stan Bowman. Many fans like to think the organization would be headed in a different direction if they were the general manager, saying they would do things differently.

I’ve been waiting for the phone to ring for 10 years. It still hasn’t, but I’ll be ready when it does. And although, I was never a Boy Scout, I still abide by their “be prepared” motto, especially when it comes to signing the NHL contract that I definitely deserve. In fact, I probably couldn’t

When Joe Sakic became the general manager of the Colorado Avalanche in 2014-15, he was heading into a good situation. In the season prior to his arrival as GM, he served as the Vice President of Hockey Operations and helped the club climb to a third-place ranking in the overall standings. But, over the next

The St. Louis Blues began their 51st season with an overtime thriller against the Pittsburgh Penguins and finished out the first month of the season with a dominating 10-2-1 record. Since October, the Blues have regressed and are third in the Central Division with a 30-18-3 record. Led by the addition of Brayden Schenn and another

Last week, Rob Vollman of ESPN.com wrote a pretty provocative piece concerning the legitimacy of an Auston Matthews trade out of Toronto. When I read the headline, I probably thought what most Leafs fans thought: there’s no way the Toronto Maple Leafs are trading Matthews. The article itself was thought-provoking, and there was a lot

When Phil Housley took to the podium for his inaugural press conference, he promised a fast-paced, high octane offensive approach, the likes of which the fans in Buffalo hadn’t seen in over a decade. Fresh off of a deep playoff run with the Nashville Predators, he was the odds-on favorite to return to coach the

As we approach the 2018 NHL Trade Deadline, the Detroit Red Wings once again find themselves trending toward the “sellers” designation. A wild-card spot is in reach, but the organization has higher priorities, namely the development of its young players and adding quality assets for the future. Now in the last year of his contract,

A month ago, it seemed the Vancouver Canucks had plenty of questions in terms of what to do. They were in the middle of the playoff race and playing well behind a legitimate first line and steady goaltending. Since Bo Horvat went down with a foot injury, the Canucks have won only two of their

Colorful hockey nicknames are an integral part of the game’s history. They’re as much a part of hockey as the blue line. You’re given one early by your mite’s coach only later to be called something else by your teammates. Your mom may not want to know what your teammates call you, so you let

The Arizona Coyotes, at the time long overdue for a uniform change, rolled out their current uniforms in time for the 2015-16 National Hockey League season. However, the new rendition leaves much to be desired. An Unbalanced Mess At first glance, the addition of black seems to be a welcome one, given the relative

After being drafted 31st overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues, Russian prospect Klim Kostin started his North American career playing in the AHL for the San Antonio Rampage. He recently played at the 2018 WJC for Team Russia, where he was the top-scoring player of the team that were

The stage is set. The 2018 World Junior Championship in Buffalo are just approaching their apex. It’s very simple really — the team that wins is draped in gold elation, and the team that does not has to swallow second best. For many players, this will be their only chance at a gold medal. While

Rookies (or “first-year players” as captain Zdeno Chara prefers) figured to play an integral role this season for the Boston Bruins. Eschewing the big-name free agent signings of years past and opting instead to ride the youth wave, success was to be largely predicated on the readiness of several promising prospects within the pipeline. It

The Vancouver Canucks have been obnoxiously injury-plagued in this 2017-18 season and one of their major losses has been that of Sven Baertschi, their top-line winger, and sidekick of the also-injured Bo Horvat. Prior to suffering his broken jaw on Dec. 9, Baertschi managed to tally 18 points in 30 games, leaving him tied for

Every team, no matter how good, can always improve from the right trade. The Calgary Flames have enough quality pieces for them to be considered a playoff-caliber team. But there are four players out there that could potentially take them from a playoff team to a contender. Although it would be nice, the Flames aren’t

As naturally as many families become associated with specific industries that they work within, it’s become commonplace for families to become associated with specific sports in specific parts of the world. Within the hockey world, arguably the most influential family in history – with apologies to Maurice and Henri Richard – is the Sutter family.

Not every player joins the NHL and lights the league on fire, and to expect every young player to have an impact on their team like Auston Matthews or Connor McDavid is unrealistic at best. Some will take longer to develop than others. Some are forced into more duty than maybe they are ready to

We’re two-and-a-half months into the 2017-18 NHL season and things really couldn’t have gone much better for John Stevens’ Los Angeles Kings so far. They’re enjoying a nice bounce-back campaign after missing the playoffs under Darryl Sutter a season ago and are once again getting solid contributions from veterans like Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown,

In their last home game before Christmas, the Washington Capitals found themselves in strange and unfamiliar territory against the Anaheim Ducks; heading into the third period, the Capitals were trailing 2-0, unable to solve the mystery of Ducks netminder John Gibson. Not only that, Washington’s first two periods were highlighted by an overwhelming amount of

The rivalry between the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators is a bit overshadowed by the hate both fan bases have for the Toronto Maple Leafs, but it’s one of the more interesting rivalries in the NHL. Whether it’s a brutal hit, controversial call, or some kind of coaching craziness, something always seems to get fans

Mark Messier did it all in a career that spanned 25 NHL seasons over four decades. He’s the only player in NHL history to captain two different professional teams to championships; he won five Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers and one with the New York Rangers—all in a span of ten years. Simply remarkable.

Through one-third of their first NHL season, the Vegas Golden Knights are tied for fifth in NHL team scoring with 101 goals. That number is plus-11 versus their opponents, and VGK’s per-game average of 3.48 goals is third only to the New York Islanders and Tampa Bay Lightning. To help compile this list of the

It’s the most wonderful time of the year and if you’re a fan of the Nashville Predators, you’re really loving the way this team is playing. After treating swarms of fans to a captivating run to the Stanley Cup Final back in June, the Music City Men are now sitting one point out of first